Is it a HIPPA violation?

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A couple of weeks ago I went to a party with some fellow nurses. When leaving I slipped on ice and sprained my ankle. We went to the ER where I work for xrays. They drew a blood alcohol level (without telling me) and it was .9... .8 is legally drunk. I was not driving nor was I reporting for duty. I have been asked to come in tomorrow to talk with my charge nurse, supposedly about my alcohol level that night. Most nurses and ward clerks can bring that information up on the computer. Is that a HIPPA violation?

Okay....this happend a couple of weeks ago and they are now calling you about it? What has happened in the mean time?

Any updates?

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Specializes in EMS, ER, GI, PCU/Telemetry.
Okay....this happend a couple of weeks ago and they are now calling you about it? What has happened in the mean time?

Any updates?

yes i am curious to know the outcome of this situation as well.

it just seems strange that they would be drawing BAC labs for a fx ankle, esp since she was off duty and not at a work related event.

what you do outside of work really isnt too much of their business, and i think that you should check with the ordering MD on exactly why he/she felt it necessary to check your BAC. i would have personally refused them.

let us know how things went.

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Specializes in Urgent Care.

if any covered individual has accessed your healthcare record, beyond what they need to provide their service to you, it is a hipaa violation, cut and dried.

the first step of taking action is to file a complaint with dshs office of civil rights (yes, that is who investigates hipaa violations). lawsuits are for civil court to recover damages from someone who has wrongfully caused you an injury or financial loss, hipaa provides for criminal penalties under federal law. that is why everyone gets so jumpy about it. the possible penalties far outwiegh any lawsuit as they may include jail!

here are the pages to get you started

general compliance and enforcement info

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/enforcement/

how ocr enforces the hipaa privacy rule

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/enforcement/hipaarule.html

how to file a complaint

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaahowto.pdf

file a complaint right away if you know of a severe hipaa violation like this!

btw laws vary so much by locality, don"t record anything w/o consulting a lawyer! it can be criminal.

dont say anything, tell her you cant discuss it, allow her to talk as much as she wants and then ask her to highlight your meeting in a short note.

make your own notes as soon as you leave, dated and such, basically you are starting a chart of this case.

now, contact a lawyer.

oh yeah, file a complaint!

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Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.

the first step of taking action is to file a complaint with dshs office of civil rights (yes, that is who investigates hipaa violations). lawsuits are for civil court to recover damages from someone who has wrongfully caused you an injury or financial loss, hipaa provides for criminal penalties under federal law. that is why everyone gets so jumpy about it. the possible penalties far outwiegh any lawsuit as they may include jail!

quote]

thank you--it is what i meant by "suing"..was just so angry i forgot the difference between criminal and torte law!:bow:

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Specializes in Emergency, Nursing Management, Auditing.

Sounds to me like somebody smelled the alcohol on your breath and was curious to see "just how much" you had drank. And it also sounds to me like a total violation of your privacy! Not to mention the HIPAA violation, where your charge nurse knows about your BAC that night!

However... I'm not sure if it's the same in your hospital's ED, but in the ED I work in, alcohol levels and drug screens obtained by us are not allowed to be used in court, because they are not "legally" (read: by police) obtained. Still, I'd be concerned about these employees' motives...

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

A few thoughts ...

1. Certainly the OP was aware of the blood draw. Did you not ask what was being drawn? If your ankle "looked bad" I can see someone going ahead & locking & labbing a patient on the theory that it might be a surgical issue. It's a stretch, but I can see it happening.

2. If MD was considering IV narcotic pain meds, I can see the rationale for an ETOH level. Again, a stretch, but not out of the realm of possibility.

3. I'm speaking in sweeping generalities here ... but in general, ER/EMS folks tend to be a drinking crowd. I'm just not getting why anyone in the ER would be the least bit concerned about OP's ETOH level on any kind of moral or professional basis, unless OP was sufficiently intoxicated to be ... umm ... behaving in an *interesting* manner. But I can't imagine labs being drawn, sent, and results recorded as part of the medical record just for amusement.

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i wonder if this was an after work party, ie still in uniform, perhaps they thought she WAS on duty....also, perhaps she was just tipsy enough, not to ask why they were drawing blood.....however, i am with several of you, i want the ending to the story!

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Specializes in Emergency, outpatient.

(unless someone is obviously intoxicated, can't verbalize mechanism of injury, can't walk and has no one to pick them up - we draw to assess levels and determine when it would be safe to discharge the patient...we have held people for many hours).

There's your reason; that's what the doc will say. You know as well as I do that the ED staff constantly discusses the care of each and every patient behind the nurse's station, and every chart is picked up and perused. How many of you have won the bet on the alcohol level of an intoxicated pt? You don't have to access the computer to know that information at most facilities, and it's difficult to know what chart to post results on if you don't look at the lab result that just printed on the printer. Is the compliance Nazi going to fire the whole ED staff?

This situation is painful, I agree, but who did the drinking at a party populated with coworkers? It will be difficult to prove HIPAA violations when your charge nurse doesn't know what your alcohol level was, but talked with party friends about how slaughtered everybody got. You know how the talk is the day after a big party. Is there an ongoing problem with alcohol anyway? (Sorry to be devil's advocate; somebody hadda say it.:o)

I would follow the previous posters' recommendations and get a lawyer, but it might be an uphill battle. It's going to be interesting to see just what your charge nurse has to say, and who is present in the room during the meeting. Good luck to you--hope your ankle gets better. :up:

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Let's say the CN did find out from someone at the party in something as innocent as, " We were drinking and had a blast. Shame XYZ sprained her ankle." I could see that happening with no bad intentions or harm intended.

What I don't understand is why it would be the CN's business to approach the nurse. It really wouldn't be their concern as it didn't affect their job. They were off duty, didn't harm a patient, didn't have a DUI, etc. I don't think this is a boundary that should be crossed and that is where the CN might make a big problem for the hospital. If she knows your blood alcohol level, details of exam, etc. then you will know someone shared it or she looked.

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Specializes in Emergency, outpatient.

I agree....wonder if it is connected at all?

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.
You know as well as I do that the ED staff constantly discusses the care of each and every patient behind the nurse's station, and every chart is picked up and perused. How many of you have won the bet on the alcohol level of an intoxicated pt? You don't have to access the computer to know that information at most facilities, and it's difficult to know what chart to post results on if you don't look at the lab result that just printed on the printer. Is the compliance Nazi going to fire the whole ED staff?

This situation is painful, I agree, but who did the drinking at a party populated with coworkers? It will be difficult to prove HIPAA violations when your charge nurse doesn't know what your alcohol level was, but talked with party friends about how slaughtered everybody got. You know how the talk is the day after a big party. Is there an ongoing problem with alcohol anyway? (Sorry to be devil's advocate; somebody hadda say it.:o)

This is what I was getting at ...

ER get-togethers are generally late nights and often involve some degree of hangover the next day. ;)

We have treated co-workers and friends who have been drinking. Driving under the influence is inexcusable ... anything else generally just makes for a good story the next day.

Either we don't have the whole story here, or the OP has somehow misinterpreted this planned meeting with the charge nurse. Perhaps it's to discuss scheduling, since the ankle fx obvious curtails working for some period of time.

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Specializes in Emergency, outpatient.

Yep, I think it's the ankle and not the ETOH that might be the reason. We need "the rest of the story!":coollook:

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